The FReeper Foxhole Remembers Charles W. Anderson and the 15th Air Force

The 15th Army Air Force & the B-17

A major aspect of combat in World War II included air warfare, which established lasting change in the way the world conducts war. Many American men in the Army Air Force courageously flew all over the world during the Second World War. Armed with their B-17’s, my grandfather and many other men flew bravely across Europe, contributing to the eventual defeat of the Axis powers.

General James H. Doolittle
First Commander of the 15th Air Force

The Army Air Force entered the war with 25,000 enlisted men and 4,000 aircraft. As the men and their planes proved themselves worthy of battle, the air force grew rapidly. During the peak of the war, the air force counted 2,411,294 officers and enlisted men, and 75,000 aircraft. These men and their planes proved a huge asset to the war effort, but unfortunately many sacrificed themselves for the endeavor. The air force lost 229,544 aircraft from July 1940 through August 1945, while 52,173 of the 115,382 men injured in combat died. The AAF lost more planes than men injured because many airmen survived the plane crashes. Many men whose planes crashed ended up as prisoners of war. Though the army suffered many casualties, the Air Force definitely did their part in the war effort.

The B-17, one of the primary Army planes used in WWII, had its birth shortly before the war. Boeing, in 1935, had just finished up a prototype of the B-17, an advanced bomber. A Seattle newspaper covered the story and the editor, Richard L. Williams, chose the caption “15-ton Flying Fortress” for the picture. The name stuck, which is why “B-17” is interchangeable with “Flying Fortress.” The plane, originally designed for long-range ocean patrol to protect the U.S. coastline, caught the Army’s eye. Though expensive, the Air Force bought the Fortress in 1939, with the B-17B model.

Charles with his crew (names not known), he is top right, sitting on the tail.

Of all B-17s used in WWII, the B-17G model proved to be the most advanced. The B-17 turned out to be one of the most successful aircraft in the Army. The Flying Fortress included models ranging from the first, a B-15YB, to (what my grandfather flew in) the B-17 G introduced in September 1943. The G model added superior technology over the other models, and it was therefore dubbed the supreme Fortress model. Thus, 8,680 of the 12,731 B-17s produced were model Gs. These B-17s were used primarily in the 15th Army Air Force.

In November 1943, four Bomb Groups in North Africa and the 12th Air Force combined under direction of General James Doolittle to create the 15th Army Air Force. The 15th AAF moved to Foggia, Italy where they targeted Southern Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the Balkans, which could not be reached by the 8th Air Force located in England. Stationed in the “Mediterranean theater” as they called it, the 15th AAF did not perform long-range bombing but strategic bombings, such as destroying supply lines. The 15th Air Force began operations on November 2, 1943, attacking Messerschmitt factory at Weiner Neustadt (where my grandfather was first held as POW). The most important feat of the 15th AAF was destroying oil fields at Ploesti during July and August of 1944. “Chiefly in Europe, in the hostile skies over Adolf Hitler’s Third Reich the Flying Fortress would become legendary”. The 15th did major damage to Germany and the Axis powers, contributing to the Allied cause.

The men in the 15th AAF armed with their B-17s became a powerful asset for the allied forces during WWII. The B-17s flew at very high altitudes, and they could actually target “not just enemy factories, but parts of factories”. This spectacular combat weapon became a major threat to enemies. Bluntly stated, “the B-17 was not built for leisure, but for the most dangerous of professions - total war”. These heavy bombers made their presence known through their bombs. Also called “Queen of the Skies,” the B-17 dropped more than 640,000 tons of bombs in Europe. This is more than the 452,000 tons dropped by B-24’s and the 436,000 by other American aircraft. Early in 1945 sections of Europe targeted by the Army Air Force had been reduced to “near impotence” by lack of supplies “due in no small part to the strategic bombing offensive against Germany carried out by the 15th AF”.

The Tail gunner knelt at his position and may have been the most isolated of the crew. Great care had to be taken to make sure oxygen flow was maintained while at altitude. Without any crew members close at hand to keep watch the Tail Gunner needed to be self sufficient. Oxygen deprivation was a serious problem and was the cause for many aircrew casualties.

The position provided powerful protection for the aircraft and enemy fighters were never quick to attack a group of B-17's from behind. The position also provided an excellent vantage point for viewing of the formation behind the aircraft

My grandfather was one of those men. Stationed in Foggia, he flew as a tail gunner in the 15th Army Air Force, specifically in the 772nd Squadron. He fought in “the 463rd Bomb Group – including the 772nd, 773rd, 774th and 775th Squadrons – who, during World War II helped liberate Europe and defeat the worldwide threat of fascism”. The victory of the Allied powers in World War II is due to many men and women who fought courageously to overcome the Axis powers. Having done extensive research and learning about men like my grandfather I realize how much the Air Force contributed in World War II. I truly feel that “all WWII Veterans . . .but most importantly the men of the 463rd Bomb Group, 15th Air Force, the greatest Flyers of their time” boldly brought the Allied cause to victory.

Life as a Prisoner of War

My grandfather, Charles Anderson, did not talk much about the war, and he certainly refrained from talking about his experience as a prisoner of war. My mother, aunts, and uncle had very little information about this particular area of their father’s life. This made me a little frustrated because, out of his time in the military, I especially wanted to explore his experiences as a POW. Nonetheless, I have learned about his time in POW camps the best way I could. I learned about several men who not only served in the Army Air Force, but also were POWs during World War II.

StalagLuft 4

“World War II in Europe saw an enormous number of soldiers, sailors, and airmen fall into their enemy’s captivity”. More Americans became POWs during World War II than in any other war involving the United States. More specifically, there was over ten times the number of American POWs during WWII at 130,201 than in every other war (concerning America) combined at 12,056 (“American Prisoners of War”). These statistics certainly have great importance, but as I read the individual stories of so many men, numbers began to seem very insignificant. Numbers are so cold and unemotional; they do not tell stories and experiences. A story is more significant than a number.

Although I came across countless stories of American prisoners of war, I chose to focus on three men whose military experience appears very similar to my grandfather’s. These men include James Dowling, Joseph P. O’Donnell, and Lloyd Kilmer. All three served in the Army Air Force during World War II. Dowling served in the 445th Air Wing of the 8th Air Force. Kilmer, also in the 8th Air Force, was a B-24 pilot in the 448th Bomb Group, Squadron 712 in the 2nd Air Division. The 8th Air Force, stationed in England, was very close to the 15th Air Force (located in Foggia, Italy), in which my grandfather operated. Joseph O’Donnell also flew in the 15th Air Force, 483rd Bomb Group, 815th Bomb Squadron. I chose to write about these men because they all served in the Air Force and became POWs; their stories must somewhat resemble my grandfather’s.

"Roll Call- at a StalagLuft

Many parts of the men’s stories are quite alike. Each of their crews got shot down while operating bombing missions to Germany. O’Donnell’s crew was actually bombing the aircraft factory in Wiener Neustad, Austria, where my grandfather was first brought after being captured as a POW. Germans eventually captured the men after each of them bailed out of their respective crash. Joseph O’Donnell saw trees and rocks as he descended after his bailout. He thought about the little training he had gotten and remembered he needed to keep his legs crossed if he thought he would land in a tree. He ended up landing in some bushes, but I wonder if my grandfather’s thoughts resembled O’Donnell’s after he bailed out, as he did land in a tree. After his crash, O’Donnell came upon a freshly plowed field while deciding his best route to escape, but was detected by a German plane. A short time later he found a German soldier waiting for him.

After his crash, James Dowling reunited with his crewmembers only to be captured. They then loaded into boxcars for a ride to a POW camp. Riding in the boxcars seems to be an experience every prisoner of war went through. This is actually one of the situations my grandfather survived that I actually have knowledge about. My grandfather told about how the POWs were bombed by their own men while stuck in the boxcars. This is something that Dowling also experienced. On a long 300-mile ride he and fellow POWs experienced bombing by U.S. planes. Unaware that Americans were in the boxcars, the U.S. bombed them. O’Donnell also noted that they had no food, water, or toilet facilities in the crowded boxcars.

After riding in the boxcars, but before they “settled” into camp, prisoners of war faced interrogation. During interrogation, POWs were threatened if they did not supply information. O’Donnell received a right hand chop to his ear because he would only give his name, rank, and serial number. Later he was asked to provide some maps he had in exchange for food. He eventually surrendered the maps when the Germans threatened to shoot him.

Lloyd Kilmer also tells an interesting story of his interrogation experience. Kept in solitary confinement for days, he refused to repeat more than his name, rank, and serial number (like O’Donnell). As a result of his “stubbornness,” the Germans pressed him at gunpoint for information concerning the 8th Air Force. When he declined to inform them, a German officer came to have a word with him. He decided that because Kilmer would not disclose anything, he would show him what they knew. The officer proceeded to show a book with information regarding Kilmer’s bomb squadron, bombing reports, and biographies of the crewmembers. He said to Kilmer, “You think we’re pretty smart, don’t you? We know ninety-five percent of what’s going on in the American Armed Forces. However, your government knows ninety-seven percent of what’s going on in the German Armed Forces”. Hearing these stories, I cannot imagine what my grandfather encountered, especially because he never talked about it.

My grandfather did comment a little about how the Air Force men were despised by civilians outside camps. Because of this, the airmen were not allowed to do forced labor outside camp. This is something that O’Donnell recounts. After his interrogation, a truck with a German guard took him to the camp. He told the guard that he did not need to be guarded; that he would not escape. The guard replied that he did not guard him from escape, but from the civilians. He said if civilians found out that he was an airman they would hang him without question because he had just destroyed their town and killed their families. Joined by other airmen on a train in Vienna, they experienced this hatred first-hand. He said, “they knew we were air corp and violently vented their anger. Fortunately for us, their only weapon were a swift kick, a deliberate punch, or a wad of well aimed spit in the face” Any time air corp POWs went outside the camp, they would be subjected to this abuse.

Though they could not participate in forced labor, POWs did not have an easy life in the camps. My grandfather never talked much about it, and I could not find very much on the life inside the camps. However, Kilmer is one of the few former POWs who did talk a little about life in camp. He remembers how he watched many other inmates get shot when they attempted to escape. He also comments on how the meals only included watery cabbage or turnip soup, and they spent cold nights with only a thin blanket. He lost sixty pounds in his time at camp.

These men merely survived in camps until the end of the war. Only Kilmer commented on his experience at the end of the war, and I took great interest in that part of his story. When the war ended, he resided in Moosburg Stalag 7A, the same place my grandfather was at the end of the war. On April 29, 1945 Kilmer attended a POW church service when the men heard an explosion of small arms fire. Soon a U.S. tank came through the German barbed wire. Their time at camp was over! He told about the wonderful sight when the American flag replaced the Swastika. I really enjoyed reading his story about April 29, because I just cannot help but imagine this is possibly the sight that my grandfather saw that day.

James Dowling, Lloyd Kilmer, and Joseph O’Donnell have brought my family and me a gift without even knowing. As I read each man’s story with great interest, it gave me insight into a piece of what my grandfather may have gone through. He did not speak much about life as a prisoner of war, but I cannot help think it had a tremendous affect on him. Through these men I have taken bits and pieces of their stories, and imagined what he must have experienced. It is truly fulfilling just to know a little more about what he faced, and I have been granted that through these men’s stories.

Additional Sources:

www.thehewitt.net
mywebpages.comcast.net/abner00
www.wpafb.af.mil
www.381st.org
www.bibl.u-szeged.hu
www.thebattlezone.com
www.armyairforces.com
www.west.net/~awon

The 15th Air Force patch consists of a blue disc and a white star charged with a red disc in the center and with golden orange stylized wings below a golden orange Arabic numeral "I5", all within a golden orange amulet. (Approved 19 Feb 1944.)

Constituted as the Fifteenth Air Force on 30 Oct 1943, and activated in the Mediterranean theater on 1 Nov 1943, the 15th began operations on 2 Nov 1943 and engaged primarily in strategic bombardment of targets in Italy, France, Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Austria, Hungary, and the Balkans until the end of the war.

The 15th was deactivated in Italy on 15 Sep 1945, and activated again in the US on 31 Mar 1946. Assigned to Strategic Air Command.

WINGS include

5th Bombardment: 1943-1945.
42d Bombardment: 1943.
47th Bombardment: 1944-1945.
49th Bombardment: 1944-1945.
55th Bombardment: 1944-1945.
304th Bombardment: 1943-1945.
305th Bombardment: 1943-1945.
306th Fighter: 1944-1945.
307th Bombardment: 1944.

STATIONS included

Tunis, Tunisia, 1 Nov 1943;
Bari, Italy, 1 Dec 1943-15 Sep 1945.
Colorado Springs, Colo, 31 Mar 1946.

COMMANDERS included

Maj Gen James H Doolittle, 1 Nov 1943;
Maj Gen Nathan F Twining, 3 Jan 1944;
Brig Gen James A Mollison, 26 May 1945;
Brig Gen William L Lee, 3 Aug 1945;
Col Elmer J Rogers Jr, 31 Aug-15 Sep 1945.
Maj Gen Charles F Born, 31 Mar 1946.

CAMPAIGNS included Air Combat,

EAME Theater;
Air Offensive, Europe;
Naples-Foggia;
Anzio;
Rome-Arno;
Normandy;
Northern France;
Southern France;
North Apennines;
Rhineland;
Central Europe;
Po Valley.

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Good morning everyone!

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Morning Radu. First one in today.

Mornin' SAM.

First one in today.

Does this mean I get the "early bird" award? LOL!

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ooo, B-17's. Now there's an airplane!!

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Today's classic warship, USS Kearsarge (BB-5)

Kearsarge class battleship
displacement. 11,540
length. 375'4"
beam. 72'3"
draft. 23'6"
speed. 16 k.
complement. 553
armament. 4 13"'; 4 8", 14 6", 20 6-pdr., 8 1-pdr., 4 .30 cal.

The USS Kearsarge, named by act of Congress to commemorate the famed steam sloop-of-war, was launched 24 March 1898 by the Newport News Shipbuilding Co., Newport News, Va.; sponsored by Mrs. Herbert Winslow, daughter-in-law of the former USS Kearsarge's commander, Captain John A. Winslow, during her famous battle with CSS Alabama; and commissioned 20 February 1900, Captain William M. Folger in command.

Kearsarge became flagship of the North Atlantic Station, cruising down the Atlantic seaboard and in the Caribbean. From 3 June 1903 to 26 July 1903 she served briefly as flagship of the European Squadron while on a cruise that took her first to Kiel, Germany. She was visited by the German Emperor 26 June 1903 and by the Prince of Wales 13 July. She returned to Bar Harbor, Maine, 26 July 1903 and resumed duties as flagship of the North Atlantic Fleet. She sailed from New York 1 December 1903 for Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where, on 10 December, the United States took formal possession of the Guantanamo Naval Reservation. Following maneuvers in the Caribbean, she led the North Atlantic Battleship Squadron to Lisbon where she entertained the King of Portugal, 11 June 1904. She next steamed to Phaleron Bay, Greece, where she celebrated the Fourth of July with the King, Prince Andrew, Princess Alice of Greece. The squadron paid goodwill calls at Corfu, Trieste, and Fiume before returning to Newport, R.I., 29 August 1904.

Kearsarge remained flagship of the North Atlantic Fleet until relieved 31 March by battleship Maine, but continued operations with the fleet. During target practice off Cape Cruz, Cuba, 13 April 1906, an accidental ignition of a powder charge of a 13-inch gun killed two officers and eight men. Four men were seriously injured.

Attached to the 2d Squadron, 4th Division, she sailed 16 December 1907 with the "Great White Fleet" of battleships, sent around the world by President Theodore Roosevelt. She sailed from Hampton Roads around the coasts of South America to the Western seaboard, thence to Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, and Japan. From there, Kearsarge proceeded to Ceylon, transited the Suez Canal, and visited ports of the Mediterranean, before returning to the eastern seaboard of the United States. President Theodore Roosevelt reviewed the Fleet as it passed into the Hampton Roads 22 February 1909, having completed a world cruise of overwhelming success, showing the flag and spreading good will. This dramatic gesture impressed the world with the power of the U.S. Navy.

Kearsarge decommissioned in the Philadelphia Navy Yard 4 September 1909 for modernization. She recommissioned 23 June 1915 for operations along the Atlantic coast until 17 September when she departed Philadelphia to land a detachment of marines at Vera Cruz, Mexico. She remained off Vera Cruz from 28 September 1915 to 5 January 1916, then carried the marines to New Orleans before joining the Atlantic Reserve Fleet 4 February 1916 at Philadelphia. She trained Massachusetts and Maine State Naval Militia until America entered World War I, then trained thousands of armed guard crews as well as naval engineers in waters along the East Coast ranging from Boston to Pensacola. On the evening of 18 August 1918, Kearsarge rescued 26 survivors of Norwegian Bark Nordhav which had been sunk by German Submarine U-117. The survivors were landed in Boston.

Kearsarge continued as engineering training ship until 29 May 1919 when she embarked Naval Academy Midshipmen for training in the west Indies. The midshipmen were debarked at Annapolis 29 August and Kearsarge proceeded to the Philadelphi a Navy Yard, where she decommissioned 10 May 1920 for conversion to a crane ship and a new career. She was designated AB-1 5 August 1920.

In place of military trappings, Kearsarge received an immense revolving crane with a rated lifting capacity of 250 tons, as well as hull "blisters," which gave her more stability. The 10,000-ton craneship rendered invaluable service for the next 20 years. One of many accomplishments was the raising of sunken submarine SQUALUS off the New Hampshire coast. On 6 November 1941 she designated Crane Ship No. 1, giving up her illustrious name which was assigned to a mighty aircraft carrier. But she continued her yeoman service and made many contributions to the American victories of World War II. She handled guns, turrets, armor and other heavy lifts for new battleships such as Indiana and Alabama; cruisers Savannah and Chicago; and guns on the veteran battleship Pennsylvania.

In 1945 the crane ship was towed to the San Francisco Naval Shipyard where she assisted in the construction of carriers Hornet, Boxer, and Saratoga. She departed the west Coast in 1948 to finish her career in the Boston Naval Shipyard. Joe McDonald, master rigger, described her as "a big gray hulk of a thing" which was "pulled around by two or three tugs" on the job; "But the old girl has brought millions of dollars worth of business to Boston. Without her we would never have been able to do many of the big jobs, that cost billions of dollars." As one example, he recalled that the former battleship lifted a gantry crane intact at the South Boston Naval Drydocks and transported it to Charleston where she placed it on crane tracks to be driven away. As Crane Ship No. 1, her name was struck from the Navy List 22 June 1955. She was sold for scrapping 9 August 1955.

LOL. oooo is right. I saw my first one up close a few months ago, they are huge and and what a good looking plane!

Good morning.

Good morning EGC.

Thank you for the reminder. Thanks to you it is a habit now.

Good morning Mayor. I see they got rid of Davis last night. Now let's see what Arnold does with California. Gotta be better. LOL.

Present!

Good morning aomagrat.

The Kearsarge name seems to be a ship name we read a lot about throughout the Foxhole threads. Kearsarge is at least is the most familiar name to me that we seem to keep coming acrosss, from the sloop to the aircraft carrier.